After a long winter the cabin fever has dug into your brain and you’re craving the pull of a fish on the end of your line. Longer days and warmer temperatures signal time to get serious about fishing. Winter has been tough, and spring is still cold, but many pro kayak anglers are out there fishing anyways. Kayak Angler asked six pros for the first fish they caught this spring. Here’s what they told us.
6 Pros Share Their First Fish of Spring
“My first fish of the ‘spring’ was a three-pound bass I had to really piss off with a trick worm that was sitting on her bed in a very pressured lake here in Baton Rouge. I had a couple of fish before this one that got the better of me and one hog that was way too smart thats got me coming back.”
— Brendan Bayard, Hobie pro staffer, founding member of the Bayou Coast Kayak Fishing Club and 2013 IFA Kayak Angler of the Year
“I’ve been very busy with the academic year coming to a close, so I haven’t been out on the water to fish much recently. I managed to catch small ‘pin’ whiting on one occasion that I brought a rod with me. Not really a mammoth catch by any standards and more suited to bait for sharks, but a fish is a fish!”
— Gary Robinson, Wilderness Systems (Ireland), AT Paddles, Palm Equipment and Cox and Rawle pro staffer, photographer and writer
“I managed four speckled trout a few weeks ago. They were only 17 to 19 inches but it felt good to catch some fish after this crazy winter. The local club is having its monthly fish-out this Saturday and I’m hoping the redfish have moved into the area.”
— Brian Gartman, Malibu Kayaks pro staffer, tournament angler, one of the directors of the MBKFA (Mobile Bay Kayak Fishing Association), and a dad who takes his son fishing
“8.2 pound largemouth, Elba, AL on a Taylor Mann’s Custom Lures Scatter Shad. Sight casted to her while testing out the new Power-Pole Micro Anchor.”
— Chad Hoover, Bonafide Kayaks and Fish USA pro staffer, author of Kayak Bass Fishing, founder of Kayak Bass Fishing (KBF) and host of Chad Hoover Fishing
“First fish I caught this spring was a five-pound largemouth bass through the ice in New Hampshire. It was my last ice fishing trip of the season. We had a cold start to spring this year. I will finally be on the open water this weekend.”
— Amy Johnson, Line Cutterz pro staff, Rudy Project fishing team member and BASS CRAZY team member
“A pair of spring chinook caught in the heart of downtown Portland! It was my first outing for spring salmon this year and I hit my limit. Not a very common thing that early on in the year. The first was 19 lbs, and the second was 16 lbs, both were around 35 inches. I caught them both while trolling with cut-plug herring.”
— Jeff Anderson, Hobie, Next Adventure Paddle Sports, Daiwa Fishing and Kokatat pro staffer, 2011 Northwest Kayak Anglers’ Angler of the Year and YouTuber @rawkfishpnw
Feature photo: Courtesy Jeff Anderson/YouTube
